MANGROVE 



MANIHOT 



1991 



Mangle (Rhizophoracese) , which grows in tropical America 

 and the seacoasts of Florida. The black mangrove is 

 Avicennia nitida (V erbenacex) of the Gulf coast and 

 tropical America; and the name mangrove is applied to 

 species of this genus in other parts of the world. For an 

 account of the curious propagation of the Rhizophora, 

 see page 980, "Cyclopedia of American Horticulture." 



MANICARIA (name derived from the word for 

 glove, because of the spathe). Palmacese. Two or 3 

 species, or perhaps only 1, in Trop. S. Amer., little cult., 

 allied to Geonoma. They are robust unarmed palms 

 with more or less pinnatisect or entire Ivs.: fls. large, 

 rose-ochroleucous, heavy-scented, on many branching 

 tomentose spadices: fr. very large. M. saccifera, 

 Gaertn., has Ivs. simple or split with age, dentate, 30 

 ft. long and 4-5 ft. broad, transversely furrowed, crown- 

 ing an erect deeply ringed trunk: fls. of both sexes on the 

 same spadix, the latter 3-4 ft. long: fr. 3-lobed. Lower 

 Amazon and elsewhere. A striking palm with its 

 immense simple Ivs. 



MANIHOT (native Brazilian name). Euphorbiaceae. 

 Tropical trees and shrubs cultivated as ornamentals and 

 for important economic products. 



Usually glaucous and glabrous or nearly so: juice 

 milky: Ivs. alternate, entire to lobed or sometimes 

 almost palmate: fls. large for the family, monoecious, 

 in terminal or axillary racemes or panicles, apetalous; 

 sepals united, at least at the base, imbricate, often 

 petaloid; stamens 10; ovules 1 in each of the 3 cells; 

 seeds carunculate. About 130 species, all American 

 and mostly in Brazil. Related to Jatropha and Ricinus. 

 Although the plan of the infl. is different, several species 

 of Manihot and Jatropha are otherwise so similar that 

 they have been placed first in one genus and then in 

 the other. Monogr. by Pax, in Engler's Pflanzenreich, 

 hft. 44 (1910). 



The cassava plant, M . utilissima, has been cultivated 

 as a food plant since prehistoric times by the natives of 

 Brazil. There are many varieties in cultivation and 

 these are not known in the wild state. The plant is a 

 perennial shrub in the tropics, and resembles somewhat 

 the castor bean. The abundant starch in the large 

 fleshy roots which grow in a cluster at the base of the 

 stem gives it its food value. It is used in various ways 

 as food, including the manufacture of tapioca, Brazilian 

 arrow-root, and the like. 



The roots contain more or less hydrocyanic acid 

 which is often sufficient to render them deadly poison- 

 ous in the raw state. It is rendered harmless by heating 

 or is pressed out with the juice in preparing the roots 

 for food. The more poisonous varieties are generally 

 known as bitter cassava, those with less of the acid as 

 sweet cassava, but the amount of the poison varies 

 with seasons and other conditions. Varieties of M. 

 didcis var. Aipi are also grown as sweet cassava in the 

 tropics but are generally not very productive. M. 

 carthaginensis is also sometimes used as cassava. 



Cassava is grown in some of the warmer parts of the 

 United States chiefly as a stock feed. It does best in 

 light, but rich sandy soil. It is propagated by cuttings. 

 Just before frost the more mature parts of the canes are 

 cut and buried till spring and then cut into 4- to 6-inch 

 pieces and planted 4 feet each way. The cultivation is 

 similar to corn. In tropical countries the cuttings may 

 be made and planted at any time. Some varieties, 

 especially early maturing ones, may be grown from 

 seed. The roots are left in the ground till used, as they 

 decay quickly when harvested. The yield is from six 

 to ten tons of roots to an acre, or even more. For further 

 information on cassava, see "Cyclopedia of Agricul- 

 ture," Vol. II, p. 227, and Farmers' Bulletin, United 

 States Department of Agriculture, No. 167. 



Manihot Glaziovii and other species have long been 

 utilized for rubber in the wild state in Brazil. Some 



2322. Flowers and fruit of Manihot 

 utilissima. (Enlarged) 



years ago this species was planted extensively in various 

 tropical lands out of its natural habitat, the general 

 result being a low yield of rubber and disastrous failure 

 of the enterprise. In recent years, plantations under 

 proper conditions have given much better results. 

 This is the chief source of the ceara rubber, so called 

 from the town of Ceara 

 in Brazil. Other species 

 are also worked for 

 rubber in the native 

 woods of Brazil. M. 

 dichotoma and M . piau- 

 hyensis are also being 

 grown in rubber planta- 

 tions with success. All 

 the ceara rubber species 

 grow in dry situations 

 with little summer 

 rainfall. M. piauhyen- 

 sis is more shrubby 

 and adapted to light 

 sandy land and M. 

 dichotoma to rough 

 heavier soil. M. hepta- 

 phylla is also grown to 

 some extent for rubber 

 on light soil. 



The ceara rubber 

 trees are grown from seed, but may be raised from cut- 

 tings. The seed is planted about 1 inch deep in good 

 soil and kept moist till the seedlings are well estab- 

 lished. The germination is slow and irregular, taking 

 from three weeks to six months. Filing the seed-coat 

 to hasten germination has been tried but often encour- 

 ages decay. The young plants are cut back and trans- 

 planted into the field after the stem has hardened. 

 They grow rapidly, the taller species like M. Glaziovii, 

 reaching 16 feet in ten months. The smaller ones may 

 yield a full crop in four years after planting. (See Ule. 

 Notizbl. Bot. Garden, Berlin, 5, 1908.) 



Some species of manihot are occasionally grown in 

 greenhouses mostly for the tropical effect of the foliage. 

 They are grown in light but rich soil and do best in a 

 dry room. They are propagated easily from seeds but 

 are usually grown from cuttings of young but firm 

 wood in sandy peat under glass with bottom heat. 



A. Bracts over 1 in. long, ovate to broad-lanceolate: calyx 

 glabrous, %in. long: shrubs or small trees. 



piauhyensis, Ule. Tree, 6-20 ft. high: Ivs. 5-7- 

 parted, practically to the base, the lobes obovate- 

 cuneate, obtuse, entire, mucronate, somewhat pubes- 

 cent, 3^4 in. long: fls. racemose: caps, wing-angled. 

 S. Brazil. Cult, for rubber. 



heptaphylla, Ule. Tree, 6-20 ft. high: Ivs. 3-7-parted 

 almost to the base, the lobes obovate-oblanceolate, 

 some of them pandurately or sinuately 1-2-lobed near 

 the apex, 4-5 in. long, acuminate, mucronate: fls. in 

 short racemes: caps, subterete, not wing-angled. S. 

 Brazil. Cult, for rubber. 



AA. Bracts much smaller, usually narrower. 

 B. Lvs. not peltate. 

 c. Lf. -lobes entire. 



palmata, Muell. Arg. (Jatropha palmdta, Veil.). 

 Shrubby: Ivs. deeply 5-11-parted, glabrous, base 

 cordate; lobes of leaves, 3-5 in. long, lanceolate, 

 acuminate; stipules small, deciduous: fls. racemose to 

 sub-paniculate; calyx %in. long, glabrous: caps, not 

 wing-angled. S. Brazil. 



utilissima, Pohl (Jatropha Manihot, Linn., in part. 

 Jdnipha Manihot, HBK.). BITTER CASSAVA. MAN- 

 DIOCA. MANIOC. TAPIOCA PLANT. SWEET POTATO 

 TREE, and many other names in different tropical 

 countries. Figs. 2322, 2323. An herbaceous shrub 



